December 18, 202
Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 2: 22-24; Romans 1: 2-7
What’s in A Name?
I am struck by how many of today’s Lectionary passages speak of names for Jesus. Isaiah (Isaiah 7:14) steps in when the fearful King Ahaz refuses to ask God to provide a sign that his enemies will be crushed. Isaiah, whose own name means “the lord will save us,” prophesies that God himself will send a sign in a human form, and his name will be Immanuel -”God with Us.”
Matthew I: 22-24, recounts Joseph’s dream after his discovery that his intended bride, Mary, is pregnant. God’s angel encourages him to marry her since the pregnancy is spirit-filled. God tells Joseph that his son will be named Jesus -”God saves us” – which fulfills Isaiah’s prophecy; and that this Savior, Jesus, will rescue generations from their sins.
Finally, Paul in Romans I: 2-7, summarizes Jesus’s identity as the Son of God, the Messiah, our Master. He justifies these names by citing Jesus’s birth from a spiritual conception fathered by God, and his death and resurrection from a violent death.
Of course, there are more names for Jesus. Handel’s “Messiah,” which is commonly performed during Advent, regales him as “Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (this music is now in my head, and I’ll be singing it the rest of the day! Will you?).
Last year, I bought another book by Julia Cameron, author of the famous The Artist’s Way, a workbook about opening to your creativity. I actually plowed through two copies of The Artist’s Way, about ten years apart, and found myself bursting with creative energy each time. So, this latest book, Seeking Wisdom, A Spiritual Path to Creative Connection, piqued my interest. I bought it and again followed Cameron’s directions from front to back.
The personal result of one exercise in particular, has changed me. Cameron asked me to list ten names or concepts of God I grew up with. I am guessing you may have scribbled a list yourself and found those names for God unsettling, as I did: gender-specific, violent, distant, angry, judgmental.
Next, I was to list ten qualities I would like to have in God, a God who supports my creativity, my highest good. I surprised myself with words like playful, humorous, friendly, outdoorsy, musical, instructive, my age, ‘gets me,’ even quirky. I mulled over what a ‘godname’ might be, and after weeks of experimentation I finally fell on GODFRIEND.
After reimagining God, my prayers now come more easily and more often. I am in conversation, in dialogue with Godfriend. I ask questions and listen. There is always a response. God, Jesus, Holy Spirit reside in this new name.
What words for God from your childhood might you include on your list? What words apply to the God of your understanding these days? Do you call God a name other than God?
Robin Gaiser